by Patrick McIlheran
Repeal-minded though Republicans are, it'll be practically impossible for them to dismantle Obamacare, analysts were saying Wednesday. True enough: The coming mandates and micromanaging are now law, which takes two houses of Congress and a president's signature to undo.
But how much tougher is the road ahead for the president, who must sell the nation on gifts he has given and that voters Tuesday emphatically rejected.
Take Obamacare: The president and congressional Democrats all along said that you may not understand it yet but once you do, you'll love it.
This was belied by polls showing that as parts of the vast contraption were revealed, the public liked it less.
Then came Tuesday. Nothing was so fatal to House Democrats, especially newbies, than to have voted for Obamacare. Dozens fell, including Rep. Steve Kagen (D-Appleton). The one Republican who favored it lost.
Running against it saved the jobs of 11 out of 34 Democrats who had opposed the bill, and a popular Democratic governor won West Virginia's Senate seat only after he reversed to say he'd oppose Obamacare.
In Wisconsin, the Senate race became a referendum after incumbent Russ Feingold stood firm for Obamacare. Victorious challenger Ron Johnson spent the campaign telling how it was the bill's passage that goaded him into running. At every turn, he said he was convinced it is a government takeover that will kill innovation.
He pointed out repeatedly that fear of the plan's costs were depressing the economy.
Johnson won, 52% to 47%. For anyone tempted to say Obamacare's problem was that it didn't go far enough, Johnson beat a senator who'd become the darling of progressives nationally in part by advocating a more radical single-payer plan. Feingold said his doubt about Obamacare was that it was a halfway measure. He's now looking for work.
Obamacare, meanwhile, is law, its provisions over the next few years falling into place like the tumblers in fate's deadbolt.
The president and many more Democratic senators face election in two years having already made this electoral poison inevitable. No one will so wish it repealable as they.
But it's not just Obamacare. Another transformational gift from the president was high-speed rail, into which he wants to pour billions so that fewer of us drive or fly.
One of the biggest first dollops of aid went to Wisconsin to buy us a train from Milwaukee to Madison. Our gratitude was such that the president twice had to send his transportation secretary to boast that the train was unstoppable, and our outgoing governor had to frantically commit as much of the money as he could before election day.
Result: The candidate who swore repeatedly to stop this "gift" and its unending costs, Scott Walker, is governor-elect.
Do not say that Walker's victory was instead about jobs or the economy, since his Democratic opponent, Tom Barrett, said the train would create jobs and goose the economy.
Barrett and his side bound jobs, economy and the transformational train into a bundle that voters did not buy. Yet as of Wednesday, the president was committed to stuffing this gift into our hands. That's his strategy to win Wisconsin in 2012.
Walker on Wednesday said he was confident Wisconsin could reject the train. He noted a parallel: The supposedly inexorable and broadly insufferable giant blue-shirt sculpture that officials had committed to putting on an airport garage just before Walker became Milwaukee County executive. It was successfully canceled.
The train is a much bigger deal, but elements - free federal money, contracts already signed - match up. So does the underlying conflict.
Citizens are told of some scheme for their collective improvement. A majority says no. Officials hint that we're too moronic to grasp what's good for us and proceed to do what they think we ought to be grateful for.
Obamacare's the same thing, only far, far grander. This shouldn't surprise us. It all fits the progressive's understanding of America as a herd that insists on the forms of democracy but upon whom the wise must impose improvements anyhow.
Those forms of democracy walloped Democrats Tuesday. The next walloping may be exactly as unrepealable as Obamacare.
____
Patrick McIlheran is a Journal Sentinel editorial columnist. E-mail pmcilheran@journalsentinel.com
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Bachmann: I begged the Fed not to do it
WND MONEY
Michele: 'Does anyone honestly believe adding inflation would be a good thing?'
By Joe Kovacs
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
Fresh from her victory in last night's election, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann says she begged the Federal Reserve not to go ahead with controversial plans to monetize the national debt, and is calling its purchase of hundreds of billions of dollars in Treasury bonds "a disaster" for America.
The U.S. central bank, hoping to create growth in the sluggish economy, decided today to proceed with its scheme, buying $600 billion of federal government debt over the next eight months.
Officials also indicated they were ready to purchase even more bonds if inflation remained too low and unemployment too high.
"This is a very serious move by the Fed," Bachmann, a member of the House Financial Services Committee, told radio host Glenn Beck today. "What this means is intentionally the Federal Reserve will be spiking inflation. They think that's good for the country. Does anyone honestly believe adding inflation would be a good thing to the country? Well, the Federal Reserve does. This is a disaster."
Get ready for severe inflation that could destroy the value of the U.S. dollar! Read "Crashing the Dollar"
"Every bit of it that they monetize the debt will mean a reduction in the value of the dollar," she added. "We're looking now potentially at losing 20 percent of the value of the dollar if they go forward with this. I wrote a letter several weeks ago to the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and begged him not to do this."
In her Oct. 14 letter, the Minnesota Republican told Bernanke the policy move was "clearly less preferable than improving our nation's economy through responsible fiscal policy that consists of decreased government spending and lower rates of taxation and a constrained regulatory regime that operates within the boundaries of prudence and reasoned self-restraint."
In this Oct. 14, 2010, letter, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., begged Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke against going ahead with a plan to monetize U.S. debt by purchasing hundreds of billions of dollars in Treasury bonds.
Today, Bachmann aired her fears, saying there's a long history of such action dating back into the early part of the 20th century.
"They have so devalued the dollar, that the dollar is worth about 4 cents what it was back in about 1915 and 1920 because of this issue of inflation. Government continues to overspend. When they overspend, they inflate the dollar and they pay their debt off with cheaper dollars. But they are literally robbing the sustenance out of every American because they're taking away the value of our dollar. And the people, of course, it will hurt the most are senior citizens."
For its part, the Fed said in its statement it was taking the action because the U.S. economy was still lackluster: "The pace of recovery in output and employment continues to be slow. Household spending is increasing gradually, but remains constrained by high unemployment, modest income growth, lower housing wealth, and tight credit."
The decision is not without dissent at the central bank, as Kansas City Fed President Thomas Hoenig voted against the tactic, fearing the risks outweigh any potential benefits.
"Hoenig also was concerned that this continued high level of monetary accommodation increased the risks of future financial imbalances and, over time, would cause an increase in long-term inflation expectations that could destabilize the economy," according to the Fed's statement.
Hoenig previously said while taking such action might work "in clean theoretical models, I am less confident it will work in the real world."
Related offers:
Get ready for severe inflation that could destroy the value of the U.S. dollar! Read "Crashing the Dollar"
Surviving Financial Crisis: How to Prosper in Any Financial Crisis
Web of Debt: The Shocking Truth About Our Money System and How We Can Break Free
Previous story:
Bernanke: Federal Reserve caused Great Depression
Michele: 'Does anyone honestly believe adding inflation would be a good thing?'
By Joe Kovacs
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
Fresh from her victory in last night's election, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann says she begged the Federal Reserve not to go ahead with controversial plans to monetize the national debt, and is calling its purchase of hundreds of billions of dollars in Treasury bonds "a disaster" for America.
The U.S. central bank, hoping to create growth in the sluggish economy, decided today to proceed with its scheme, buying $600 billion of federal government debt over the next eight months.
Officials also indicated they were ready to purchase even more bonds if inflation remained too low and unemployment too high.
"This is a very serious move by the Fed," Bachmann, a member of the House Financial Services Committee, told radio host Glenn Beck today. "What this means is intentionally the Federal Reserve will be spiking inflation. They think that's good for the country. Does anyone honestly believe adding inflation would be a good thing to the country? Well, the Federal Reserve does. This is a disaster."
Get ready for severe inflation that could destroy the value of the U.S. dollar! Read "Crashing the Dollar"
"Every bit of it that they monetize the debt will mean a reduction in the value of the dollar," she added. "We're looking now potentially at losing 20 percent of the value of the dollar if they go forward with this. I wrote a letter several weeks ago to the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and begged him not to do this."
In her Oct. 14 letter, the Minnesota Republican told Bernanke the policy move was "clearly less preferable than improving our nation's economy through responsible fiscal policy that consists of decreased government spending and lower rates of taxation and a constrained regulatory regime that operates within the boundaries of prudence and reasoned self-restraint."
In this Oct. 14, 2010, letter, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., begged Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke against going ahead with a plan to monetize U.S. debt by purchasing hundreds of billions of dollars in Treasury bonds.
Today, Bachmann aired her fears, saying there's a long history of such action dating back into the early part of the 20th century.
"They have so devalued the dollar, that the dollar is worth about 4 cents what it was back in about 1915 and 1920 because of this issue of inflation. Government continues to overspend. When they overspend, they inflate the dollar and they pay their debt off with cheaper dollars. But they are literally robbing the sustenance out of every American because they're taking away the value of our dollar. And the people, of course, it will hurt the most are senior citizens."
For its part, the Fed said in its statement it was taking the action because the U.S. economy was still lackluster: "The pace of recovery in output and employment continues to be slow. Household spending is increasing gradually, but remains constrained by high unemployment, modest income growth, lower housing wealth, and tight credit."
The decision is not without dissent at the central bank, as Kansas City Fed President Thomas Hoenig voted against the tactic, fearing the risks outweigh any potential benefits.
"Hoenig also was concerned that this continued high level of monetary accommodation increased the risks of future financial imbalances and, over time, would cause an increase in long-term inflation expectations that could destabilize the economy," according to the Fed's statement.
Hoenig previously said while taking such action might work "in clean theoretical models, I am less confident it will work in the real world."
Related offers:
Get ready for severe inflation that could destroy the value of the U.S. dollar! Read "Crashing the Dollar"
Surviving Financial Crisis: How to Prosper in Any Financial Crisis
Web of Debt: The Shocking Truth About Our Money System and How We Can Break Free
Previous story:
Bernanke: Federal Reserve caused Great Depression
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
U.S. citizens clean House
ELECTION 2010
Republican tidal wave washes Washington incumbents to sea
By Drew Zahn
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
The tidal wave of Republican victories expected by many pundits in the 2010 election has now landed on shore.
In the U.S. House of Representatives, where the GOP needed to win 39 seats from Democrats in order to take over leadership, poll returns now indicate Republicans will pick up at least 49 seats, with several races yet undecided.
In the U.S. Senate, where the power struggle was expected to be much closer, current voter returns indicate Republicans made gains but garnered just shy of the 10 seats needed to overcome the Democrats' 59-41 edge, with only a few races yet undecided.
Among the 37 states where the governor's mansion is up for grabs (and where Democrats held a 26-24 advantage going into this election), Republicans are projected to claim victories in Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Wyoming – all previously held by Democrats – among others.
Because politics alone can't solve the country's problems, get "Taking America Back," Joseph Farah's manifesto for sovereignty, self-reliance and moral renewal.
Notably, the transfer of power on Capitol Hill means Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. – who powered several bills through Congress, including the health-care reform act branded as Obamacare – will lose her position as House speaker in 2011.
"This is going to be a big day," said Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, who is the leading Republican in line to be the new speaker of the House.
For those who think the government is spending too much and bailing out too many, Boehner told the Associated Press, "This is their opportunity to be heard."
Democrat pollster Doug Schoen put it even more bluntly: "This is a complete repudiation of the Democratic Party."
In the other house of Congress, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., entered the night expecting a close race with tea-party favorite Sharron Angle, but began to pull away in the late hours of the evening and was proclaimed the winner.
Final results of several election battles may not be known, even after all polls close. Tight races, absentee ballot counts and even recounts may come into play, even while allegations of voter fraud and election anomalies threaten to plague the results.
In Nevada, for example, according to an Associated Press report, Republican Party legal counsel David O'Mara may have cause to challenge the results, for he has already filed a 44-page complaint alleging voter logs in a pair of Nevada counties showed the number of ballots cast was larger than the number of voters who signed the election registers.
Angle's campaign has also alleged Reid and Democratic union backers were illegally buying votes with free food and Starbucks gift cards as well as pressuring casino workers into voting.
WND's Voter Fraud Hotline has also brought to light several instances of alleged impropriety at polls around the country.
Regardless of any potential court battles that may stem from fraud allegations, however, the sweeping Republican victory has major implications for the near future. The Democrats' loss of the U.S. House, coupled with what many pundits are suggesting is a resounding referendum on President Obama's policies, will profoundly affect the administration's ability to push its legislative agenda.
Furthermore, changes at the state level may have sweeping consequences in the upcoming redistricting process for the 2012 election. Of the 36 legislatures that control congressional redistricting, 23 chambers in 17 states entered the election within five seats of tying or changing hands. As Republican victories mount in governorships and state legislatures, the swing could grant the GOP a lasting boost in future elections as well.
Many commentators have credited the tea parties with driving an anti-incumbent fever in the electorate, as the grassroots movement demanded Congress reject federal health-care mandates and stop skyrocketing government spending. The Democrats in power, however, pushed both, becoming clear targets for voters looking to oust unresponsive legislators.
Noted Janet Porter, president of Faith2Action and WND columnist: "We tried to warn them – 9 million times – with pink slips that tripled the Washington Monument in height. Maybe next time they'll listen."
Races under the microscope
The evening brought conclusion in some races to months of heated media attention, while leaving some still to be decided.
GOP Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell, for example, who garnered perhaps the largest share of news coverage in the past few weeks, was unable to upset Democrat Christopher Coons, the clear victor in Delaware's election to fill Vice President Joe Biden's former seat.
In Florida, tea-party favorite Marco Rubio completed his bid to first topple Gov. Charlie Crist in the Republican primary race for a Senate nomination and then beat Crist again in the general election.
Fox News analyst Brit Hume, speaking of Charlie Crist, the former Republican who continued his run for Senate as an independent, said, "This may be the single most flexible politician I've ever seen."
The president is scheduled to hold a full press conference in the White House East Room at 1 p.m. tomorrow, presumably to comment on today's election.
Surmising that Obama will deliver a message urging the new Congress to work with him in bipartisan cooperation, radio host Laura Ingraham said, "It's always an end to partisanship when Republicans make significant advances. ... It's kind of predictable. ... I hope Republicans don't fall for the Lucy-and-the-football, you-gotta-be-bipartisan-kind-of-thing now."
Chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee John Cornyn of Texas also addressed working with Obama in the wake of today's Republican surge:
"I think here's a chance not only for the nation to make a midcourse correction, but for President Obama, as well," Cornyn said. "If he'll work with us on those issues-like getting Americans back to work, cutting spending and debt, then I think he'll find a more-than-willing partner in the GOP."
The senator, however, also issued Obama a warning:
"If he's going to continue to not listen to the American people and lecture them and tell them what he thinks is good for them despite their wishes, then I think we're in for a pretty tough period," Cornyn said. "And the electorate will cast their judgment for 2012."
Republican tidal wave washes Washington incumbents to sea
By Drew Zahn
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
The tidal wave of Republican victories expected by many pundits in the 2010 election has now landed on shore.
In the U.S. House of Representatives, where the GOP needed to win 39 seats from Democrats in order to take over leadership, poll returns now indicate Republicans will pick up at least 49 seats, with several races yet undecided.
In the U.S. Senate, where the power struggle was expected to be much closer, current voter returns indicate Republicans made gains but garnered just shy of the 10 seats needed to overcome the Democrats' 59-41 edge, with only a few races yet undecided.
Among the 37 states where the governor's mansion is up for grabs (and where Democrats held a 26-24 advantage going into this election), Republicans are projected to claim victories in Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Wyoming – all previously held by Democrats – among others.
Because politics alone can't solve the country's problems, get "Taking America Back," Joseph Farah's manifesto for sovereignty, self-reliance and moral renewal.
Notably, the transfer of power on Capitol Hill means Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. – who powered several bills through Congress, including the health-care reform act branded as Obamacare – will lose her position as House speaker in 2011.
"This is going to be a big day," said Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, who is the leading Republican in line to be the new speaker of the House.
For those who think the government is spending too much and bailing out too many, Boehner told the Associated Press, "This is their opportunity to be heard."
Democrat pollster Doug Schoen put it even more bluntly: "This is a complete repudiation of the Democratic Party."
In the other house of Congress, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., entered the night expecting a close race with tea-party favorite Sharron Angle, but began to pull away in the late hours of the evening and was proclaimed the winner.
Final results of several election battles may not be known, even after all polls close. Tight races, absentee ballot counts and even recounts may come into play, even while allegations of voter fraud and election anomalies threaten to plague the results.
In Nevada, for example, according to an Associated Press report, Republican Party legal counsel David O'Mara may have cause to challenge the results, for he has already filed a 44-page complaint alleging voter logs in a pair of Nevada counties showed the number of ballots cast was larger than the number of voters who signed the election registers.
Angle's campaign has also alleged Reid and Democratic union backers were illegally buying votes with free food and Starbucks gift cards as well as pressuring casino workers into voting.
WND's Voter Fraud Hotline has also brought to light several instances of alleged impropriety at polls around the country.
Regardless of any potential court battles that may stem from fraud allegations, however, the sweeping Republican victory has major implications for the near future. The Democrats' loss of the U.S. House, coupled with what many pundits are suggesting is a resounding referendum on President Obama's policies, will profoundly affect the administration's ability to push its legislative agenda.
Furthermore, changes at the state level may have sweeping consequences in the upcoming redistricting process for the 2012 election. Of the 36 legislatures that control congressional redistricting, 23 chambers in 17 states entered the election within five seats of tying or changing hands. As Republican victories mount in governorships and state legislatures, the swing could grant the GOP a lasting boost in future elections as well.
Many commentators have credited the tea parties with driving an anti-incumbent fever in the electorate, as the grassroots movement demanded Congress reject federal health-care mandates and stop skyrocketing government spending. The Democrats in power, however, pushed both, becoming clear targets for voters looking to oust unresponsive legislators.
Noted Janet Porter, president of Faith2Action and WND columnist: "We tried to warn them – 9 million times – with pink slips that tripled the Washington Monument in height. Maybe next time they'll listen."
Races under the microscope
The evening brought conclusion in some races to months of heated media attention, while leaving some still to be decided.
GOP Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell, for example, who garnered perhaps the largest share of news coverage in the past few weeks, was unable to upset Democrat Christopher Coons, the clear victor in Delaware's election to fill Vice President Joe Biden's former seat.
In Florida, tea-party favorite Marco Rubio completed his bid to first topple Gov. Charlie Crist in the Republican primary race for a Senate nomination and then beat Crist again in the general election.
Fox News analyst Brit Hume, speaking of Charlie Crist, the former Republican who continued his run for Senate as an independent, said, "This may be the single most flexible politician I've ever seen."
The president is scheduled to hold a full press conference in the White House East Room at 1 p.m. tomorrow, presumably to comment on today's election.
Surmising that Obama will deliver a message urging the new Congress to work with him in bipartisan cooperation, radio host Laura Ingraham said, "It's always an end to partisanship when Republicans make significant advances. ... It's kind of predictable. ... I hope Republicans don't fall for the Lucy-and-the-football, you-gotta-be-bipartisan-kind-of-thing now."
Chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee John Cornyn of Texas also addressed working with Obama in the wake of today's Republican surge:
"I think here's a chance not only for the nation to make a midcourse correction, but for President Obama, as well," Cornyn said. "If he'll work with us on those issues-like getting Americans back to work, cutting spending and debt, then I think he'll find a more-than-willing partner in the GOP."
The senator, however, also issued Obama a warning:
"If he's going to continue to not listen to the American people and lecture them and tell them what he thinks is good for them despite their wishes, then I think we're in for a pretty tough period," Cornyn said. "And the electorate will cast their judgment for 2012."
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
The Tyranny of the Minority
by A.W.R. Hawkins
When the Founding Fathers created this nation, they designated it a republic rather than a democracy. They did so because a republic is fixed and tends toward stability over time, whereas a democracy, which is always in flux, is prone to violent dissolution at any moment. In fact, many of them referred to democracy as “mob rule,” and wanted to avoid it like the plague for fear that it could provide a faction the opportunity to access to the levers of political power and change the course of the nation for the worse in a relatively short period of time.
Although we have all but abolished the Constitution the Founders left us and moved closer to a democracy with each passing generation, we have still managed to remain a republic foundationally. Yet somewhere along the way, between 1776 and now, we opened the door to a rabid political correctness that has actually nurtured the very faction-like atmosphere which tends to undo a republic.
But it’s not the kind of faction our Founders feared: not one where a majority of voters unite for a cause and force their will upon the citizenry as a whole. Instead, it’s a perverted use of the court system and groups like the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) that allow a person to claim that he’s been offended and then to levy the charge against those who gave offense in order to control their actions.
In other words, we’re not dealing with the tyranny of the majority, but the tyranny of the minority.
We have lost nativity scenes in cities across America because one citizen of one city doesn’t like Christmas. We have lost freedom of religious expression in our public school system because a student here or there is bothered when people pray. We have lost crosses on many of our war memorials because atheists want to shield their children from religious exposure. And we are poised to lose even more freedoms if we don’t stop this scourge before it sweeps across our land and our intellectual landscape completely.
As I am writing this, citizens in King, North Carolina are protesting the removal of a Christian flag from a war memorial in that city: a flag that was removed by order of the King City Council after one veteran who saw duty in Afghanistan filed a complaint with the ACLU.
In today’s usual cryptic fashion, the name of the offended party has not been released to the public, a withholding that reflects a degree of secrecy that could lead some to believe that the offended soldier is a Muslim, an atheist, or a figment of the ACLU’s imagination. Whatever the case may be, the complaint from this ghostlike citizen in King has proven sufficient to have a flag removed that had been proudly flying over the memorial for more than six years.
And in Oxford, Mississippi, where the Ole Miss Rebels have enjoyed the rich tradition of having a mascot named “Colonel Reb” roaming the football sidelines since 1979, politically correct tendencies led them to do away with the southern icon this season and to replace him with a black bear. That’s right: the new mascot is a black bear in a southern gentlemen’s suit, and his name is the “Rebel Black Bear.”
How out of whack do things have to get before we finally say enough is enough?
The majority are losing freedom after freedom and tradition after tradition to a wimpy, nameless, minority that hides behind groups like the ACLU and dumps shame on its opposition through words like ‘diversity’ and ‘fairness.’ But there is nothing diverse about a politically correct landscape, and the methods used to try to create one are clearly anything but fair.
Our Founders were wise enough to know that a tendency toward unchecked factions would devastate the country they sought to leave to posterity. Surely we must be brave enough to take their fears into account and fight against the one person here or the two people there who are actively using the court system to rip us away from our moorings.
The tyranny of the minority is tyrannical indeed.
______
HUMAN EVENTS columnist A.W.R. Hawkins holds a Ph.D. in U.S. Military History from Texas Tech University. He will be a Visiting Fellow at the Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal during the summer of 2010.
When the Founding Fathers created this nation, they designated it a republic rather than a democracy. They did so because a republic is fixed and tends toward stability over time, whereas a democracy, which is always in flux, is prone to violent dissolution at any moment. In fact, many of them referred to democracy as “mob rule,” and wanted to avoid it like the plague for fear that it could provide a faction the opportunity to access to the levers of political power and change the course of the nation for the worse in a relatively short period of time.
Although we have all but abolished the Constitution the Founders left us and moved closer to a democracy with each passing generation, we have still managed to remain a republic foundationally. Yet somewhere along the way, between 1776 and now, we opened the door to a rabid political correctness that has actually nurtured the very faction-like atmosphere which tends to undo a republic.
But it’s not the kind of faction our Founders feared: not one where a majority of voters unite for a cause and force their will upon the citizenry as a whole. Instead, it’s a perverted use of the court system and groups like the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) that allow a person to claim that he’s been offended and then to levy the charge against those who gave offense in order to control their actions.
In other words, we’re not dealing with the tyranny of the majority, but the tyranny of the minority.
We have lost nativity scenes in cities across America because one citizen of one city doesn’t like Christmas. We have lost freedom of religious expression in our public school system because a student here or there is bothered when people pray. We have lost crosses on many of our war memorials because atheists want to shield their children from religious exposure. And we are poised to lose even more freedoms if we don’t stop this scourge before it sweeps across our land and our intellectual landscape completely.
As I am writing this, citizens in King, North Carolina are protesting the removal of a Christian flag from a war memorial in that city: a flag that was removed by order of the King City Council after one veteran who saw duty in Afghanistan filed a complaint with the ACLU.
In today’s usual cryptic fashion, the name of the offended party has not been released to the public, a withholding that reflects a degree of secrecy that could lead some to believe that the offended soldier is a Muslim, an atheist, or a figment of the ACLU’s imagination. Whatever the case may be, the complaint from this ghostlike citizen in King has proven sufficient to have a flag removed that had been proudly flying over the memorial for more than six years.
And in Oxford, Mississippi, where the Ole Miss Rebels have enjoyed the rich tradition of having a mascot named “Colonel Reb” roaming the football sidelines since 1979, politically correct tendencies led them to do away with the southern icon this season and to replace him with a black bear. That’s right: the new mascot is a black bear in a southern gentlemen’s suit, and his name is the “Rebel Black Bear.”
How out of whack do things have to get before we finally say enough is enough?
The majority are losing freedom after freedom and tradition after tradition to a wimpy, nameless, minority that hides behind groups like the ACLU and dumps shame on its opposition through words like ‘diversity’ and ‘fairness.’ But there is nothing diverse about a politically correct landscape, and the methods used to try to create one are clearly anything but fair.
Our Founders were wise enough to know that a tendency toward unchecked factions would devastate the country they sought to leave to posterity. Surely we must be brave enough to take their fears into account and fight against the one person here or the two people there who are actively using the court system to rip us away from our moorings.
The tyranny of the minority is tyrannical indeed.
______
HUMAN EVENTS columnist A.W.R. Hawkins holds a Ph.D. in U.S. Military History from Texas Tech University. He will be a Visiting Fellow at the Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal during the summer of 2010.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Audio: CBS reporters plot hit piece on GOP candidate
MEDIA MATTERS
Tape reveals news team scheming to find 'child molester' supporting politician
By Aaron Klein
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
Reporters from a CBS affiliate in Anchorage, Alaska, allegedly left a voicemail by mistake at the campaign of the state's Republican nominee for Senate, Joe Miller, in which the journalists can be heard plotting to "find" a "child molester" among the politician's supporters.
The reporters are also overheard hoping for violence against Miller so they can "send out a tweet" and Facebook alert that "Miller got punched" at a rally he held four days ago.
The apparent accidental voicemail message was left on the cell phone of Miller's spokesperson, Randy DeSoto.
In the recording, the assignment editor for the CBS Anchorage affiliate, KTVA, Nick McDermott, along with other reporters, can be heard openly discussing concocting the two stories about Miller.
DeSoto says the voicemail message was later authenticated by McDermott himself, who sent a text to the Miller spokesman stating, "D--- iPhone … I left you a long message. I thought I hung up. Sorry."
"Frankly, when I first heard this I was shocked," said DeSoto. "Though a bit garbled at times, there are disturbing comments in this conversation that never should have occurred."
According to the Miller campaign, another voice in the message was that of KTVA's news director.
A recording of the audio can be heard below:
In the first portion of the discussion, the CBS reporters are heard plotting to get a list of Miller campaign supporters in order to "find" a "child molester."
"You have to find that one person," says the male reporter, apparently McDermott, to laughter in the news room.
The KTVA reporters then discuss creating a "Rand Paul incident" at a Miller rally last Thursday, hoping for violence so that they can "send out a tweet" and "Facebook" that "Miller got punched" at the rally.
In a statement released today, KTVA General Manager Jerry Bever said, "It's unfortunate that this recording has happened."
Although he does not dispute the veracity of the conversation, he said Miller's "allegations are untrue" and to allege that KTVA was intending to fabricate stories was "absurd."
"The complete conversation was about what others might be able to do to cause disruption within the Miller campaign, not what KTVA could do," Bever said.
Ed Morrisey at HotAir.com took aim at the CBS affiliate's explanation.
"Really? Do most news stations strategize about finding child molesters in campaign rallies?" he asked. "KTVA's explanation is absurd. What possible context can they put around the suggestion that they start looking for child molesters at a political rally in order to exploit that for their television coverage?"
Miller's fellow Alaskan Sarah Palin also weighed in on the issue in a discussion with Chris Wallace on Fox News this morning:
"We have the tape, Chris, and I can't wait until it busts out all over the nation, that shows what it is that we … kinda what I put up with for two years now from the media … but what Joe Miller is faced with," the former Alaska governor and vice-presidential candidate said.
"I am saying that we have on tape the CBS reporters in the affiliate up there in Alaska saying, 'Let's find a child molester in the crowd as a supporter of Joe Miller. Let's blast that,"' she continued. "'Let's concoct a Rand Paul moment there. Let's find any kind of chaos so we can tweet, "Ooh, there's chaos. Joe Miller got punched."' That's sick. Those are corrupt bastards, Chris."
A full transcript of the recorded conversation:
FEMALE REPORTER: That's up to you because you're the expert, but that's what I would do. ... I'd wait until you see who showed up because that indicates we already know something. ...
[Laughter]
[Inaudible]
FEMALE REPORTER: Child molesters ...
MALE REPORTER: Oh yeah ... can you repeat Joe Miller's ... uh ... list of people, campaign workers, which one's the molester?
[Inaudible]
FEMALE VOICE: We know that out of all the people that will show up tonight, at least one of them will be a registered sex offender.
[Laughter]
MALE REPORTER: You have to find that one person ...
[Inaudible]
FEMALE REPORTER: And the one thing we can do is ... we won't know ... we won't know but if there is any sort of chaos whatsoever we can put out a Twitter/Facebook alert saying what the ... 'Hey Joe Miller punched at rally.'
FEMALE REPORTER: Kinda like Rand Paul ... I like that.
[Laughter]
FEMALE REPORTER: That's a good one.
____
If you'd like to sound off on this issue, please take part in the WorldNetDaily poll.
http://forums.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=1891
Related Offer:
Autographed! Get Aaron Klein's "The Manchurian President" at WND's Superstore.
Tape reveals news team scheming to find 'child molester' supporting politician
By Aaron Klein
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
Reporters from a CBS affiliate in Anchorage, Alaska, allegedly left a voicemail by mistake at the campaign of the state's Republican nominee for Senate, Joe Miller, in which the journalists can be heard plotting to "find" a "child molester" among the politician's supporters.
The reporters are also overheard hoping for violence against Miller so they can "send out a tweet" and Facebook alert that "Miller got punched" at a rally he held four days ago.
The apparent accidental voicemail message was left on the cell phone of Miller's spokesperson, Randy DeSoto.
In the recording, the assignment editor for the CBS Anchorage affiliate, KTVA, Nick McDermott, along with other reporters, can be heard openly discussing concocting the two stories about Miller.
DeSoto says the voicemail message was later authenticated by McDermott himself, who sent a text to the Miller spokesman stating, "D--- iPhone … I left you a long message. I thought I hung up. Sorry."
"Frankly, when I first heard this I was shocked," said DeSoto. "Though a bit garbled at times, there are disturbing comments in this conversation that never should have occurred."
According to the Miller campaign, another voice in the message was that of KTVA's news director.
A recording of the audio can be heard below:
In the first portion of the discussion, the CBS reporters are heard plotting to get a list of Miller campaign supporters in order to "find" a "child molester."
"You have to find that one person," says the male reporter, apparently McDermott, to laughter in the news room.
The KTVA reporters then discuss creating a "Rand Paul incident" at a Miller rally last Thursday, hoping for violence so that they can "send out a tweet" and "Facebook" that "Miller got punched" at the rally.
In a statement released today, KTVA General Manager Jerry Bever said, "It's unfortunate that this recording has happened."
Although he does not dispute the veracity of the conversation, he said Miller's "allegations are untrue" and to allege that KTVA was intending to fabricate stories was "absurd."
"The complete conversation was about what others might be able to do to cause disruption within the Miller campaign, not what KTVA could do," Bever said.
Ed Morrisey at HotAir.com took aim at the CBS affiliate's explanation.
"Really? Do most news stations strategize about finding child molesters in campaign rallies?" he asked. "KTVA's explanation is absurd. What possible context can they put around the suggestion that they start looking for child molesters at a political rally in order to exploit that for their television coverage?"
Miller's fellow Alaskan Sarah Palin also weighed in on the issue in a discussion with Chris Wallace on Fox News this morning:
"We have the tape, Chris, and I can't wait until it busts out all over the nation, that shows what it is that we … kinda what I put up with for two years now from the media … but what Joe Miller is faced with," the former Alaska governor and vice-presidential candidate said.
"I am saying that we have on tape the CBS reporters in the affiliate up there in Alaska saying, 'Let's find a child molester in the crowd as a supporter of Joe Miller. Let's blast that,"' she continued. "'Let's concoct a Rand Paul moment there. Let's find any kind of chaos so we can tweet, "Ooh, there's chaos. Joe Miller got punched."' That's sick. Those are corrupt bastards, Chris."
A full transcript of the recorded conversation:
FEMALE REPORTER: That's up to you because you're the expert, but that's what I would do. ... I'd wait until you see who showed up because that indicates we already know something. ...
[Laughter]
[Inaudible]
FEMALE REPORTER: Child molesters ...
MALE REPORTER: Oh yeah ... can you repeat Joe Miller's ... uh ... list of people, campaign workers, which one's the molester?
[Inaudible]
FEMALE VOICE: We know that out of all the people that will show up tonight, at least one of them will be a registered sex offender.
[Laughter]
MALE REPORTER: You have to find that one person ...
[Inaudible]
FEMALE REPORTER: And the one thing we can do is ... we won't know ... we won't know but if there is any sort of chaos whatsoever we can put out a Twitter/Facebook alert saying what the ... 'Hey Joe Miller punched at rally.'
FEMALE REPORTER: Kinda like Rand Paul ... I like that.
[Laughter]
FEMALE REPORTER: That's a good one.
____
If you'd like to sound off on this issue, please take part in the WorldNetDaily poll.
http://forums.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=1891
Related Offer:
Autographed! Get Aaron Klein's "The Manchurian President" at WND's Superstore.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Feds blink in standoff with Christian colleges
OBAMA WATCH CENTRAL
Religious schools now expecting to be protected from political influence of Education Department
By Bob Unruh
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
WASHINGTON - SEPTEMBER 27: U.S. President Barack Obama greets supporters after signing the Small Business Jobs Act in the East Room of the White House September 27, 2009 in Washington, DC. The legislation provides $12 billion in tax incentives and establishes a $30 billion fund to increase credit access for small businesses.
The federal government apparently has blinked in a standoff with private Christian colleges over a proposal that would bring the schools under the regulation of the political powers in their states.
Colorado Christian University President Bill Armstrong has told WND that the rules proposed by the Education Department are the "greatest threat to academic freedom in our lifetime."
Obama's Department of Education – where Secretary Arne Duncan appointed a longtime homosexual activist who was part of the violent Act Up organization to head his "safe schools" office – has recommended that all colleges be required to have a state license. Critics say the license could enable the government to have a say in curriculum, graduation requirements and other issues.
An analysis by Shapri D. LoMaglio of the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities said the feds wanted to require colleges to "have a document of state approval … to operate an educational program."
Read about what happens to students in college, in "Already Gone."
Joining Armstrong in his alarm over the plans were former Colorado state Sen. Hank Brown, who has served as president of the University of Colorado system, as well as prominent columnists Cal Thomas and Jay Ambrose.
Now Armstrong has confirmed for WND that the new rules have been published. But there were dozens of changes in the nearly 900 pages of fine print that appear to provide for an exemption for religious colleges from the government oversight.
"The rules published today contain 82 changes from the original proposal, including 'concessions' to colleges and universities, adopted in response to adverse congressional and public comment," he said in an e-mail. "Schools will be able to continue using their own definition of 'credit hour' when awarding academic credit and 'religious and tribal institutions' will be exempted from state oversight … according to a report from The Chronicle of Higher Education," he said.
Armstrong told WND he's not ready to declare victory until he has an opportunity to analyze the hundreds of pages of new instructions. But it appears that the plans will offer the relief that private, and especially Christian schools, would need.
He had raised concerns about political influence on school operations as significant as classroom instruction. For example, a pro-abortion state official theoretically could have required a Christian school to teach "safe sex" to continue operating. Or the government could have demanded that the theory of evolution be taught as fact.
"The religious exemption could be of tremendous significance to Colorado Christian University and other faith-based schools. But it's too soon to 'declare victory' because, as always, 'the devil is in the details.' It will take a while to sift through this massive document and understand exactly what has happened. However, one thing is sure – more control over students, faculty, staff and the nation’scolleges and universities. What a pity!" Armstrong said.
"Fortunately, the rule is 'final' in name only. Congress retains power to overturn the department's action, if it wishes to do so. In recent weeks, I have spoken to three members of the Senate Committee which has jurisdiction over the Department of Education, along with Senate and House staffers. They're as upset as we are about what's going on," he said.
According to the Chronicle, the Education Department experienced "heavy pressure" from colleges on some of the issues at stake.
Terry W. Hartle, senior vice president for government and public affairs at the American Council on Education, told the Chronicle that is seems the federal agency "tried to address some of the concerns that have been raised."
He, too, however, noted that colleges are reserving judgment pending the examination of the hundreds of thousands of words.
"Everybody in D.C. knows that the devil is in the details," he told the Chronicle. "They haven't provided any."
School officials earlier said colleges already have to qualify to operate by meeting the requirements of the various relatively independent education councils.
Thomas, in a column for Tribune Media Services, warned the rules could have had a major impact.
"If imposing outside agendas – from textbook content to course selection – is supposedly bad when conservatives do it (mostly in reaction to the liberal assault on any ideas that conflict with theirs), why is it not equally onerous when liberals push for state control and the dictation of coursecontent at private colleges and universities?" Thomas questioned.
Further, Ambrose, a longtime editor with Scripps Howard News Service, said the proposal's possible impacts "are enormous, including a frightening assault on academic freedom as crucial decisions are transferred from faculty and administrators to bureaucrats and legislative bosses who just might use weapons of mass authority to demolish instruction of a kind they don't like."
"What strikes me (and Armstrong, too) is that the move is more of the same," Ambrose continued. "The Obama administration does not much trust liberty. If something out there sneezes, regulate it. Surround it with endless pages of rules, blankets and blankets of rules, enough rules to smother the slightest hope of autonomy. Do more if necessary. Take over things. Take over health care. Take over the auto industry. Take over financial institutions. Government knows all. Government should do all. Government, we praise thee!"
____
WND has reported on Duncan's appointment of Kevin Jennings, the founder of the pro-homosexual advocacy organization Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network to head the office of "Safe Schools" in the Education Department.
Religious schools now expecting to be protected from political influence of Education Department
By Bob Unruh
© 2010 WorldNetDaily
WASHINGTON - SEPTEMBER 27: U.S. President Barack Obama greets supporters after signing the Small Business Jobs Act in the East Room of the White House September 27, 2009 in Washington, DC. The legislation provides $12 billion in tax incentives and establishes a $30 billion fund to increase credit access for small businesses.
The federal government apparently has blinked in a standoff with private Christian colleges over a proposal that would bring the schools under the regulation of the political powers in their states.
Colorado Christian University President Bill Armstrong has told WND that the rules proposed by the Education Department are the "greatest threat to academic freedom in our lifetime."
Obama's Department of Education – where Secretary Arne Duncan appointed a longtime homosexual activist who was part of the violent Act Up organization to head his "safe schools" office – has recommended that all colleges be required to have a state license. Critics say the license could enable the government to have a say in curriculum, graduation requirements and other issues.
An analysis by Shapri D. LoMaglio of the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities said the feds wanted to require colleges to "have a document of state approval … to operate an educational program."
Read about what happens to students in college, in "Already Gone."
Joining Armstrong in his alarm over the plans were former Colorado state Sen. Hank Brown, who has served as president of the University of Colorado system, as well as prominent columnists Cal Thomas and Jay Ambrose.
Now Armstrong has confirmed for WND that the new rules have been published. But there were dozens of changes in the nearly 900 pages of fine print that appear to provide for an exemption for religious colleges from the government oversight.
"The rules published today contain 82 changes from the original proposal, including 'concessions' to colleges and universities, adopted in response to adverse congressional and public comment," he said in an e-mail. "Schools will be able to continue using their own definition of 'credit hour' when awarding academic credit and 'religious and tribal institutions' will be exempted from state oversight … according to a report from The Chronicle of Higher Education," he said.
Armstrong told WND he's not ready to declare victory until he has an opportunity to analyze the hundreds of pages of new instructions. But it appears that the plans will offer the relief that private, and especially Christian schools, would need.
He had raised concerns about political influence on school operations as significant as classroom instruction. For example, a pro-abortion state official theoretically could have required a Christian school to teach "safe sex" to continue operating. Or the government could have demanded that the theory of evolution be taught as fact.
"The religious exemption could be of tremendous significance to Colorado Christian University and other faith-based schools. But it's too soon to 'declare victory' because, as always, 'the devil is in the details.' It will take a while to sift through this massive document and understand exactly what has happened. However, one thing is sure – more control over students, faculty, staff and the nation’scolleges and universities. What a pity!" Armstrong said.
"Fortunately, the rule is 'final' in name only. Congress retains power to overturn the department's action, if it wishes to do so. In recent weeks, I have spoken to three members of the Senate Committee which has jurisdiction over the Department of Education, along with Senate and House staffers. They're as upset as we are about what's going on," he said.
According to the Chronicle, the Education Department experienced "heavy pressure" from colleges on some of the issues at stake.
Terry W. Hartle, senior vice president for government and public affairs at the American Council on Education, told the Chronicle that is seems the federal agency "tried to address some of the concerns that have been raised."
He, too, however, noted that colleges are reserving judgment pending the examination of the hundreds of thousands of words.
"Everybody in D.C. knows that the devil is in the details," he told the Chronicle. "They haven't provided any."
School officials earlier said colleges already have to qualify to operate by meeting the requirements of the various relatively independent education councils.
Thomas, in a column for Tribune Media Services, warned the rules could have had a major impact.
"If imposing outside agendas – from textbook content to course selection – is supposedly bad when conservatives do it (mostly in reaction to the liberal assault on any ideas that conflict with theirs), why is it not equally onerous when liberals push for state control and the dictation of coursecontent at private colleges and universities?" Thomas questioned.
Further, Ambrose, a longtime editor with Scripps Howard News Service, said the proposal's possible impacts "are enormous, including a frightening assault on academic freedom as crucial decisions are transferred from faculty and administrators to bureaucrats and legislative bosses who just might use weapons of mass authority to demolish instruction of a kind they don't like."
"What strikes me (and Armstrong, too) is that the move is more of the same," Ambrose continued. "The Obama administration does not much trust liberty. If something out there sneezes, regulate it. Surround it with endless pages of rules, blankets and blankets of rules, enough rules to smother the slightest hope of autonomy. Do more if necessary. Take over things. Take over health care. Take over the auto industry. Take over financial institutions. Government knows all. Government should do all. Government, we praise thee!"
____
WND has reported on Duncan's appointment of Kevin Jennings, the founder of the pro-homosexual advocacy organization Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network to head the office of "Safe Schools" in the Education Department.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)